Tarrytown, NY: December 8th, 2014 – Fresh on the heels of announcing its innovative Pediatric affiliation with the Montefiore Medical Center to better serve the patients of the Bronx and the lower Hudson Valley, ENT and Allergy Associates (ENTA)—the leading ear, nose, throat, allergy, and audiology practice in the nation—announced today that it has integrated its NextGen Electronic Medical Records system with Montefiore’s and created ‘a single button protocol’ to even more quickly and seamlessly refer patients from ENTA to Montefiore.

The recently announced alliance offers pediatric patients convenient and uninterrupted access from their local ENTA doc directly to tertiary hospital care at Montefiore, within 24 to 48 hours. Post hospital stay, coordinated care teams will continue treatments and additional screenings, as needed. The new EMR button will make this referral transfer even easier, and assure that patient medical records are instantly-and securely-transferred as well.

By clicking on the button, ENTA physicians are able to submit a referral to one of Montefiore’s doctors-using an approved HIPAA compliant method of communication-that includes the diagnosis, relevant images and chart notes, the specific Montefiore physician they are to see, and most importantly the clinical description of why they are being referred. The patient’s records are available to the hospital physicians instantly. This leading edge initiative is exactly on point with government endorsed efforts to ensure more effective and efficient communication between hospitals and community doctors, and results in more convenient and timely tertiary patient care.

“Our affiliation with ENT and Allergy Associates assures that pediatric patients receive the highest level of medical attention from their very first appointment to after care,” noted Dr. John Bent, Pediatric Division Director, Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, Montefiore Medical Center and Professor of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery and Pediatrics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine. “The addition of this convenient EMR referral button creates instant access to all of the patient information we need to provide the most specialized care possible. It’s a true win/win/win!”

Over the last 4 months, ENTA has worked hard to upgrade its EMR system and be prepared for ICD10 and “meaningful use” measures, proving it is “meaningfully using” EMR technology in measurement thresholds that range from recording patient information as structured data to exchanging summary care records. In order to achieve this, ENTA has maintained some of its customized ENT/Allergy templates, mainly pertaining to procedures. These provide for a higher level of detail and enable better documentation of highly specialized procedures.

“Customizing our procedure templates allows ENTA to stay current with the needs of our billing and compliance departments”, remarked Dr. Wayne Eisman, Partner at ENTA’s White Plains office. “We have our own custom workflow that we have developed into our EMR that houses all of our charges in a patient specific holding tank to be reviewed before being sent out on a claim. This ensures that our patients are billed correctly and in a timely manner.”

Added Robert Glazer, CEO of ENTA, “EMR is a huge benefit for both local practitioners and hospital physicians. But we haven’t stopped there. In fact, we have gone well beyond customizing our clinical enhancements, to also offer an integrated patient web portal, a dedicated Patient Rapid Response Center for booking appointments and a Phreesia check-in system in each of our 41 offices. In totality, these moves have decreased our accounts receivables and increased our ability to collect co-pay deductibles. The revenue cycle management of our NextGen EMR system is now positioned to handle the challenges we face in 2015”.

To learn more about the benefits of ENT and Allergy Associates, or to conveniently find an ENT doctor or Allergy Doctor and then easily book an appointment at the nearest New York (NY) or New Jersey (NJ) location, please visit www.entandallergy.com or call 1-855-ENTA-DOC.

About ENT & Allergy Associates, LLP

ENT and Allergy has over 160 physicians in 40+ office locations in Westchester, Putnam, Orange, Dutchess, Rockland, Nassau and Suffolk counties, New York City, Long Island and northern/central New Jersey. Each ENT and Allergy Associates clinical location provides access to a full complement of services, including General Adult and Pediatric ENT, Voice and Swallowing, Facial Plastics and Reconstructive Surgery, Disorders of the Inner Ear and Dizziness, Asthma, Clinical Immunology, Diagnostic Audiology, Hearing Aid dispensing, Sleep and CT Services. ENTA has a clinical alliance with The Mount Sinai Hospital for the treatment of diseases of the head and neck and esophageal cancer, a clinical alliance with the Montefiore Medical Center for the tertiary treatment of pediatric patients and a partnership with the American Cancer Society to educate and treat patients with smoking disorders and cancer. The Practice has also expanded its clinical capabilities to include advanced Immunodeficiency trials. Visit www.entandallergy.com for more information.

About Montefiore Medical Center
As the University Hospital and academic medical center for Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore is renowned for its clinical excellence, scientific discovery and commitment to its community. Recognized among the top hospitals nationally and regionally by U.S. News & World Report, Montefiore provides compassionate, patient- and family-centered care and educates the healthcare professionals of tomorrow. The Children's Hospital at Montefiore is consistently named in U.S. News' "America's Best Children's Hospitals." With four hospitals, 1,512 beds and more than 84,000 annual admissions, Montefiore is an integrated health system seamlessly linked by advanced technology. State-of-the-art primary and specialty care is provided through a network of more than 150 locations across the region, including the largest school health program in the nation and a home health program. Montefiore's partnership with Einstein advances clinical and translational research to accelerate the pace at which new discoveries become the treatments and therapies that benefit patients. The medical center derives its inspiration for excellence from its patients and community, and continues to be on the frontlines of developing innovative approaches to care. For more information please visit www.montefiore.org and www.cham.org. Follow us on Twitter; like us on Facebook; view us on YouTube.